Hancock Atrium Foe May Sue

Bonwit Teller threatened Thursday to ask a federal court to block the construction of a three-story glass atrium in front of the John Hancock Center, company officials said.

But officials of the 100-story landmark North Michigan Avenue building characterized the threats as posturing by a savvy New York retailer trying to get the best possible deal on the prime retail space the new atrium will create.

The developments came as Streeterville residents rallied to oppose a project that they contend will block some of the last open space on the Magnificent Mile and will violate the architectural integrity of one of Chicago`s best-known buildings.

David Dworkin, president and chief executive officer of Bonwit Teller, said Thursday that attorneys for the company will go to U.S. District Court in Chicago ``within the next few weeks`` to ask a judge to block the construction of the atrium.

Attorneys for the retailer will argue that the atrium violates the terms of the store`s long-term lease and is therefore a breach of their contract, Dworkin said. He would not elaborate on what terms of the lease would be violated until the petition is filed.

Dworkin said the new atrium could hurt business in a store that has never lived up to its potential. ``Philosophically, a large company like ours would never want a store in front of us-we would never agree to that,`` Dworkin said.

But Stephen J. Fitzgerald, general manager of the Hancock Center, said that negotiations are currently underway for Bonwit Teller to lease a substantial portion of the 15,000 to 20,000 square feet of retail space that the atrium will create.

``I`m dealing with a New York retailer and a very astute real estate negotiator,`` Fitzgerald said. ``We view this, at this point, as a

negotiation, and it is not at all unusual for one side to threaten legal action during the course of negotiations. It`s posturing.``

Bonwit Teller, a tenant of the Hancock`s first three floors since the building opened in 1969, will now ``lead the opposition`` to the atrium that many Streeterville residents oppose, according to a company spokesman.

But the building`s owner, John Hancock Life Insurance Co., is determined to go ahead with the $20 million atrium and plans to break ground on the addition next spring and open it a year later, Fitzgerald said.

Fitzgerald said that the atrium will solve the mixed-use building`s persistent problem with its lobby and concourse. ``We have a one-million-square-foot office building where the lobby is very weak and ineffective,``

Fitzgerald said. ``People come in there and get lost.``

Fitzgerald added that the glass and steel atrium was designed to be ``as light and airy as possible,`` to reduce the sense of encroachment on Michigan Avenue.